As we've discussed various strategies to make money and build a business on Facebook, we've also indicated some strategies that will surely fail or get you banned.
It's important to realize the boundaries of the playing field so that you do not make beginner's mistakes. Getting your account banned is not only embarrassing, but it also is a sure way to kill your business opportunity or at least delay it a long time.
Now, we will go over some of the things we've asked you to avoid earlier, as a reminder, and include new things that you should be aware to avoid. Many of the techniques that are banned from Facebook are viewed as “black hat” tricks by webmasters all over the Internet.
They are just more enforced within Facebook so that it remains a community of trusted connections, instead of another place where your privacy is invaded and your email box is stuffed full of spam.
If you are wondering if something is wrong to do, you can always check the terms of your agreement, but if it's frowned upon in other circles, it's bound to get you banned on Facebook. Always err on the side of caution and protect the investment of time you took to build your profile and generate friend contacts.
Here is an overview of things you should avoid when on Facebook, either because they violate the service agreement or because they will produce poor results, or both:
It's important to realize the boundaries of the playing field so that you do not make beginner's mistakes. Getting your account banned is not only embarrassing, but it also is a sure way to kill your business opportunity or at least delay it a long time.
Now, we will go over some of the things we've asked you to avoid earlier, as a reminder, and include new things that you should be aware to avoid. Many of the techniques that are banned from Facebook are viewed as “black hat” tricks by webmasters all over the Internet.
They are just more enforced within Facebook so that it remains a community of trusted connections, instead of another place where your privacy is invaded and your email box is stuffed full of spam.
If you are wondering if something is wrong to do, you can always check the terms of your agreement, but if it's frowned upon in other circles, it's bound to get you banned on Facebook. Always err on the side of caution and protect the investment of time you took to build your profile and generate friend contacts.
Here is an overview of things you should avoid when on Facebook, either because they violate the service agreement or because they will produce poor results, or both:
- Spamming
This has to be the number one item that will quickly get you recognized as “persona non grata” on Facebook. Not only will you be reported to Facebook, but one friend will tell all their friends, and pretty soon no one will accept your friend requests. Remember, the soft sell is the way to go with Facebook, and even this should be done only in places that are appropriate – not on other people's walls or private messaging multiple people. - Multiple profiles
As stated earlier, Facebook does not allow multiple profiles, some with different names or identities. This is strictly against Facebook's terms of service and will get you banned. Aside from that, people who genuinely know you, may figure out you have multiple inauthentic profiles and begin to question your judgment and authenticity. The best way to go is to promote your own genuine name and image, rather than attempting to be everything to everyone. - Fake personas
You must use your own name to set up a profile. There have been cases where Facebook could not believe that either a famous person wanted their own Facebook profile and banned it, or that a person was named something wacky by their parents. You will have to prove it is your name, if they happen to question your choice of names for your profile. - Using nicknames
Along the same lines, you aren't allowed to use nicknames in your profile. It must be the full name given at birth, not some pseudonym, even if that pseudonym is the name you normally use in your business. If it doesn't pass the authenticity test, it will be banned. - Representing something other than a human being
No, you can't add a profile for your business, your pet, or your imaginary friend. The profile has to represent one individual and that individual has to use their own legal name. - Harvesting email addresses
No doubt you will come across third party software scripts that will try to do things that you are told are against the terms of service, like harvesting email addresses. If you use them, you will very quickly be spotted by the Facebook staff and be banned. Don't take the chance. It's always best to just abide by the rules of service and work within the guidelines. - Poaching friends from other friends
Okay, so this is probably going to be one of the ways you network, but if you do it too much it will surely point you out as someone who is only interested in building a large friends contact list. When building your list, always seek to add quality, not quantity. - Being seen as needy
This happens when you send out too many private emails, spam the inbox, or constantly send gifts and application invites for no other reason than you want attention. People will quickly learn to ignore your overtures and you will be left with no contact at all. - Cloaking ads
This is when you use scripts to change paid advertisements content that is viewed by Facebook versus what a viewer might see. This is also referred to as “gaming ads” and can get you banned. - Selling private ads on your profile
This is against the terms of service, even though some people do it. If you do it and get caught, you will get banned. So, you will have to decide whether the risk is worth the income, but it normally isn't. - Selling inappropriate items
There are some products that are not allowed to be sold online. Check the terms of service to make sure you aren't attempting to sell something that is not allowed. - Using offensive content
This can be anything from religiously offensive content to pornographic material. You won't really get a chance to defend the content you posted, you will either be warned or banned for “offensive content” and you will have to appeal that decision. - Adding too many friends at once
You do have a limit of 50 friends per day, but excessive activity will get you tagged as a spammer. So, you don't want to attempt to hit your limit every day, instead let your friends contact list be built in a more natural manner so as not to attract too much attention from the Facebook police. There is also a maximum of 5,000 friends to your account, so you won't ever have more than that on your list, so quality is important to obtain more than quantity. - Excessive poking
There are applications that allow you to poke people as a way of getting the attention of people you like, but many people find it ultimately annoying. Facebook will suspend an account and issue a warning for excessive poking and may ban you if the offending behavior continues after the warning. - Too much self-promotion
We have given some tips for promoting yourself on your profile page, but this can raise a red flag. Be careful not to attract too much attention to your own self-promotion by continuously posting too many posts to your own wall. - Joining too many groups or networks at once
This will clue the staff at Facebook that you are harvesting contacts. So, be careful not to add yourself to too many groups or networks at once. Instead, spread them out over time and take the time to contribute to discussions with posts that are not self-promoting but add value to the community. - Using copyrighted material as your own
If you post copyrighted material as your own on your profile, you will be tagged for banning. Always seek to give credit or use the links in given outside websites to make sure the Facebook staff can see where you got the material you posted in your profile. This can also be cause for banning if you take a copyrighted video and then change it to suit your tastes.
